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'N M del.) o o @.G. BRADY.

SPRING JACK CLEANER.

No. 509,867. Patented Deo. 5,1893.

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UNITED STATES CHARLES G. BRADY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE VESTERN PATENT OFFICE.

ELECTRIC COMPANY, or sAME PLAcE.

SPRING-JACK CLEAN ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 509,867, dated December 5,1893.

Application filed September 30, 1891. Serial No. 407,237. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom it may concern:

Se it known that I, CHARLES G. BRADY, a cltizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinols, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Spring-J ack Cleaners, of which the following is a full, clear, concise,

and exact description,reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forminga part of this specification.

My invention relates to means for cleaning the contact points of spring jacks of telephone switch boards; its object is to provide means for cleaning the said contact points more thoroughly and with less injury to the spring jacks than has hitherto been possible.

My invention consists in a strip of some tough and exible material as vulcanized ber or whalebone, which I have discovered removes the incrustations from the contact points without abrading the surfaces of the metal parts, and which accommodates itself to the shape of the line spring so as not to bend or displace it.

Heretofore when the contacts of spring jacks of a switch board have required cleaning it has been common to employ a ne ille,

which was thrust into the spring jack so as.

to enter between the contact anvil and the line spring, and the incrusted dust has been thus removed. The disadvantages of this method are, that the line spring and contact anvil are scratched and roughened so as to make still less perfect contact, the contact anvil may be soon iled away so as to make no contact with the line spring, and frequently the line spring is so weakened or bent as to fail to close up the contact anvil.

I preferably employ my invention in combination wil h a plunger andasleeve surrounding said plunger of such a size and shape as to be readily introduced into the spring jack and automatically to take the proper position t0 perform its work efficiently.

My invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is an elevation of my improved spring jack cleaner, inserted into a spring j ack of ordinary construction. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through the center thereof.

Referring to Fig. 2 c is a strip of fibrous flexible material secured at one end in the plunger b by means of screw c. The plunger b is adapted to slide freely in a tube d, one end of which is of such size as to be readily introduced into the tube or test ring of a spring jack. That end of the tube d which is adapted for insertion into the spring jack, is flattened for a short distance, for a purpose which will presently be explained. The screw c projects a short distance from the plunger b and this, projecting portion travels in a longitudinal slotf in the tube d; the length of said slot determines the travel of the plunger b.

In use the smaller portion of the tube CZ is inserted into the spring jack, the flattened por-tion of the tube being toward the line spring; the line spring rides up on this ilattened portion, thereby rotating the tube nntil the end of the strip d is exactly in position to enter between the contact anvil and the line spring; the head of the plunger b is then pressed in, and the strip d is forced to enter between the contact'anvil and the line spring; the pressure of the line spring itself creates sullicient friction between the strip a and the contacts to be cleaned.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentl. The combination, with the strip a of tough flexible material, of the plunger b, the spring and the incasing tube d substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the strip d of tough flexible material, of the plunger b secured thereto, the incasing tube d adapted to be thrust into a spring jack substantially as described.

3. The combination with the strip ct, of a plunger b secured thereto by the projecting pin c, incasing tube d, adapted to be inserted into a spring jack, the longitudinal slot f in the tube cl in which the pin c travels and by for insertion into the jack with a. fiattened which its range of motion is 1imted,substan portion, as and for the purposes described. ro

tially as described. In witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my 4. The combination, With the strip a, of naine this 17th Vday of August, A. D. 1891.

tough exible material, of the plunger b se- CHARLES G. BRADY.

cured thereto, the incasing tube d adapted to Witnesses:

be inserted into a spring jack and furnished FRANK R. MCBERTY,

at the end of that portion which is adapted GEORGE L. CRAGG. 

